The member champions role at Powys County Council is set to be scrapped.

On Monday, 22 April the Democratic Services scrutiny committee debated the validity of the role.

In recent years the importance of the role has waned and there are now only three champions when there had been 10 just four years ago.

This is partly due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the restrictions placed on meeting individuals and groups at that time.

They were told by anti-poverty champion, non-affiliated Cllr Joy Jones who has been in the role since 2014 that she had regularly shared information and worked with the cabinet in the past.

But since the new cabinet was formed in 2022 and the “later years of the former cabinet” this had broken down.

Disability champion Cllr Ange Williams of the Independents for Powys group, said: “We don’t have any officers or funding, so we do this out of love for the job and the people of Powys.”

The third champion is deputy council leader and cabinet member for a Fairer Powys Labour’s Cllr Matthew Dorrance who is the Armed Forces member champion.

The recommendation to scrap member champions will now go before all councillors at a future council.